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Reviews and syntheses: Systematic Earth observations for use in terrestrial carbon cycle data assimilation systems

This paper briefly reviews data assimilation techniques in carbon cycle data assimilation and the requirements of data assimilation systems on observations. We provide a non-exhaustive overview of current observations and their uncertainties for use in terrestrial carbon cycle data assimilation, focussing on relevant space-based observations.

The CarbonTracker Data Assimilation Shell (CTDAS) v1.0: implementation and global carbon balance 2001–2015

The CarbonTracker Data Assimilation Shell (CTDAS) is the new modular implementation of the CarbonTracker Europe (CTE) data assimilation system. We present and document CTDAS and demonstrate its ability to estimate global carbon sources and sinks. We present the latest CTE results including the distribution of the carbon sinks over the hemispheres and between the land biosphere and the oceans. We show the versatility of CTDAS with an overview of the wide range of other applications.

CTDAS) v1.0: implementation and global carbon balance 2001–2015">Read more

Periodic input of dust over the Eastern Carpathians during the Holocene linked with Saharan desertification and human impact

We present the first record of dust input into an eastern European bog over the past 10 800 years. We find significant changes in past dust deposition, with large inputs related to both natural and human influences. We show evidence that Saharan desertification has had a significant impact on dust deposition in eastern Europe for the past 6100 years.

Young people’s burden: requirement of negative CO2 emissions

Global temperature now exceeds +1.25 °C relative to 1880–1920, similar to warmth of the Eemian period. Keeping warming less than 1.5 °C or CO₂ below 350 ppm now requires extraction of CO₂ from the air. If rapid phaseout of fossil fuel emissions begins soon, most extraction can be via improved agricultural and forestry practices. In contrast, continued high emissions places a burden on young people of massive technological CO₂ extraction with large risks, high costs and uncertain feasibility.

Analysis of single-Alter-shielded and unshielded measurements of mixed and solid precipitation from WMO-SPICE

Precipitation measurements were combined from eight separate precipitation testbeds to create multi-site transfer functions for the correction of unshielded and single-Alter-shielded precipitation gauge measurements. Site-specific errors and more universally applicable corrections were created from these WMO-SPICE measurements. The importance and magnitude of such wind speed corrections were demonstrated.

WMO-SPICE">Read more

Update of the Polar SWIFT model for polar stratospheric ozone loss (Polar SWIFT version 2)

The Polar SWIFT model is a fast scheme for calculating the chemistry of stratospheric ozone depletion in polar winter. It is intended for use in global climate models (GCMs) and Earth system models (ESMs) to enable the simulation of mutual interactions between the ozone layer and climate.

SWIFT model for polar stratospheric ozone loss (Polar SWIFT version 2)">Read more

Exploring gravity wave characteristics in 3-D using a novel S-transform technique: AIRS/Aqua measurements over the Southern Andes and Drake Passage

We introduce a novel 3-D method of measuring atmospheric gravity waves, based around a 3-D Stockwell transform. Our method lets us measure new properties, including wave intrinsic frequencies and phase and group velocities. We apply it to data from the AIRS satellite instrument over the Southern Andes for two consecutive winters. Our results show clear evidence that the waves measured are primarily orographic in origin, and that their group velocity vectors are focused into the polar night jet.

AIRS/Aqua measurements over the Southern Andes and Drake Passage">Read more

On the long-range offshore transport of organic carbon from the Canary Upwelling System to the open North Atlantic

We find that a big portion of the phytoplankton, zooplankton, and detrital organic matter produced near the northern African coast is laterally transported towards the open North Atlantic. This offshore flux sustains a relevant part of the biological activity in the open sea and reaches as far as the middle of the North Atlantic. Our results, obtained with a state-of-the-art model, highlight the fundamental role of the narrow but productive coastal ocean in sustaining global marine life.

HESS Opinions: A planetary boundary on freshwater use is misleading

In 2009, the “planetary boundaries” were introduced. They consist of nine global control variables and corresponding “thresholds which, if crossed, could generate unacceptable environmental change”. The idea has been very successful, but also controversial. This paper picks up the debate with regard to the boundary on “global freshwater use”: it argues that such a boundary is based on mere speculation, and that any exercise of assigning actual numbers is arbitrary, premature, and misleading.

HESS Opinions: A planetary boundary on freshwater use is misleading">Read more

Efficient retention of mud drives land building on the Mississippi Delta plain

Our work presents a novel method of measuring the capacity of deltaic landforms to trap and retain river-borne sediments, and we demonstrate that sediment retention is closely connected to sedimentary composition. Our results, supported by a unique high-resolution coring dataset in a major crevasse splay, show that finer sediments are a much larger component of the Mississippi Delta than is often acknowledged and that their abundance indicates exceptionally high rates of sediment retention.

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